The jewellery trick Princess Diana did that impressed everyone

In 1985, pictures of Princess Diana and Prince Charles dancing together in Melbourne, during their tour of Australia, made headlines.

Of course, people were happy to see them dancing, but more importantly, they were further proof of Diana's style icon status.

For the evening, the Princess wore a green one-shoulder gown, which she paired with diamond and emerald earrings and what appeared to be a matching headband, except it wasn't.

Purely by accident, she fitted a choker necklace over her head, and loved the effect so much, she kept it there.

In her book, The Royals, journalist and royal biographer Kitty Kelley wrote, ‘Diana took the necklace and put it over her head rather than wait to have it clasped around her neck. She couldn’t get it over the bridge of her nose. "My honker’s too big," she said. Vic [Victor Chapman, a Canadian diplomat] roared. "Leave it there," he said. "It’s young and fun, like you."'

Diana of course kept it there, creating a totally new trend. The emerald choker itself was originally gifted to Queen Mary by the Ladies of India in 1911, which was then given to Diana on a lifetime loan by Queen Elizabeth II shortly after her wedding to Charles.

Penny Goldstone

Penny Goldstone is the Contributing Fashion Editor at Marie Claire UK. She writes about catwalk trends and the latest high street and Instagram sartorial must-haves. She also helms the Women Who Win franchise.

She has worked in fashion for over 10 years, contributing to publications such as Cosmopolitan, Red, Good Housekeeping, and Stylist.